Better days

Chapter 2: The truth

Hwasa had been awake for hours when she finally heard movement from Wheein's bedroom. She had woken only a few hours after falling asleep, her arm numb from the weight of Wheein sleeping on her, when she crept out of bed and found refuge in the living room, sitting on the floor with Wheein's cat Ggomo making himself at home on her lap. She had remained like that for hours, not knowing how else to start making a plan of how to make Wheein feel better.

The most pressing thing, Hwasa had decided, was Wheein's father who had always been a burden in her friend's life ever since she had known her. With him threatening to expose what happened between Wheein and Nayeon, Hwasa knew that Wheein would unfortunately do anything to make sure that no one would ever know about it. In all honesty, Hwasa had almost erased the memory from her mind, only remembering when Wheein mentioned it.

Nayeon was Wheein's first friend, and when Hwasa first met Wheein, the two were an impenetrable force. Of course, she wanted to make a good impression to Wheein since she wanted badly to be friends with her, so Hwasa didn't even attempt to get in between the girls. They spent every day together; every lunchtime consisted of Wheein and Nayeon giggling over inside jokes and playful teasing while Hwasa watched in admiration of their closeness, and most weekends consisted of the trio hanging out at Wheein's house with Nayeon and Wheein competing for the each other's attention while Hwasa laughed from the sideline. Nayeon was beautiful and intelligent and while she was one of the most popular girls in school, she only seemed to value her friendship with Wheein, which was something Hwasa was glad of. And then the first summer of junior high came and everything changed.

Wheein was having a sleepover to celebrate her birthday, and with Wheein's grandmother being out of town visiting her uncle, the girls were determined to have a night to remember. Nayeon had managaed to convince one of the senior boys to buy her alcohol, and Hwasa brought enough food to feed an army and soon enough, their small yet loud party had begun. Hwasa and Wheein were in the middle of dancing when Nayeon ran to the bathroom and yelled for Wheein to help her hold her hair back. And Wheein of course left to attend to her. In the minutes that Wheein was gone, a loud knock at the door made Hwasa jump, and she turned down the music then went to check who it was. Through the peephole Hwasa could vaguely make out the figure of a man, who continued to knock at the door and then called for "Jung Wheein" to open the door.

Hwasa opened it, figuring that anyone who had Wheein's grandmother's address and knew her name couldn't be suspicious. The man entered and Hwasa immediately felt her stomach sink at the sight of him. He was sluggish in the way he walked and smelled of stale cigarettes and soju as he brushed past her and walked further into the house calling after Wheein. Hwasa followed him, telling him he should wait in the hallway outside, but the man only got louder and more frustrated. He entered the bathroom with Hwasa following closely behind, and they were both met with the sight of Nayeon and Wheein kissing. Reacting instinctively, Hwasa grabbed the man's arm with all of her strength and pulled him out of the room just as he began yelling.

"You bitch! What're you doing?!" The man shouted at Wheein, and the girl immediately pulled back, her eyes wide in shock as she realised who the voice belonged to. Her face paled, and she snatched her hands from where they sat comfortably on Nayeon's waist as if she was on fire.

"Appa..." Wheein's voice was barely a whisper, and Hwasa couldn't help but feel sick at the thought of what she had done. With no other option, Hwasa began screaming at the man, dragging him backwards and out into the living room. She was grateful of the strong smell of alcohol he gave off; she was almost certain that she would not have been able to move him if he was sober. Not knowing what else to do, she pushed him out of the house and slammed the door shut, making sure to lock it straight away. Wheein's father began pounding against the door with his fists, and what sounded like his feet too, yelling disgusting words tangled with Wheein's name, and Hwasa couldn't bear it.